Trouble Is Also Known As Man [5/2, Afternoon, Lucius]

[Melari Forthwind]

Melari had had enough of the joust. Lord Faerald was doing well, which was wonderful, but she couldn't stop flinching and closing her eyes every time the competitors came close. It seemed that the accident of her childhood was in her mind to stay, so after what felt like an eternity the girl decided she was through. Trying to fight her discomfort was obviously pointless, and during a break between rounds Forthwind excused herself to find somewhere a little quieter. Somewhere away from the field, too -- it wasn't wise to wander out of earshot, but she wouldn't complain about not being able to see the show. A stray patch of flowers seemed to do the trick: technically it still faced the stands, but when there were flowers to look at it was easier for Mel to turn her back. She was at home in gardens, and there was a rough stone bench, and plenty of spring flowers. It was perfect, so she sat.

Peace and quiet at last.

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

Lucius stumbled through the gardens, a flask of bourbon clutched in one hand. He hadn’t planned to skip the jousts, but after his break down and confession to his sister last evening following the Rose Ceremony, sitting out with the family watching men clash their lances against shields and armor didn’t sound appealing. And he had only one day before the archery tournament began, and after he’d bragged so damn much to half the men he’d gambled with, he needed to show up sober and shoot well.

He rounded the corner. He didn’t see the girl at all. He also didn’t see the big rock that stuck out of the ground, and when he tripped over it he tumbled and landed directly at her feet.

“Damn,” he muttered. At this rate he realized he should be used to drunken falls. And running into the nobility while he did it. At least this time he wasn’t drunk enough to be vomiting. Rolling over, he looked up at her and grinned.

“Damn is right. You’re so beautiful, my lady, I couldn’t even keep my feet. Please, bless me with your name, and I will give you mine.”

[Melari Forthwind]

The man was a surprise.

Melari didn't scream, but she couldn't help jumping out of her seat when he tripped and fell right in front of her. The cursing was a little shocking, too; then he rolled to look into her face and Mel officially became flustered. Compliments! Compliments from a man clutching a flask of something that was very unlikely to be water; compliments from a stranger on the ground. Ordinary men were challenging enough. Did the gods really have to give her drunk ones?

"Um...I'm Melari Forthwind, but are you..." Mel hesitated, a bit leery of touching him to help him to his feet. Weren't drunk men dangerous? "Are you all right?" She reached down, gingerly trying to take the bottle from him. "It's not even mid-day yet; I don't think you should have more of...um...whatever is in this. Please, sir."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

He let her task the flask, “You’re welcome to share some. It’s good quality, smooth enough for a lady as delicate as you.” He pushed himself up to a sitting position and rested his elbows on his knees, keeping his face turned up towards hers. She was pretty. He wouldn’t call her striking, but he thought a lot of that was her more reserved personality. Or at least what he perceived to be, considering she was telling him to cut the drink and seemed.. well a bit hesitant.

“Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey, mi’lady,” he replied, slurring the greeting slightly together the way the lesser folk did. He mostly drank with commoners and their language found it’s way onto his tongue when he had alcohol in his system. “Of The Hollows. And yes, it’s early, but I’m sure the rose ceremony yesterday wasn’t any easier for you. The others might be using the joust to manage their pain, but I like the bottle better. And tomorrow is the archery tourney and I promise you I will be sober as a baby then. I plan to win it.”

[Melari Forthwind]

"Thank you, but no. I haven't much taste for liquor." Melari tilted her head to look at him, curious now that her initial fright was over. At his introduction, however, her eyes widened. Goodness, at this rate she'd bump into every major Lord in the realm! Although she would never have expected to meet one drunk...and at least this time it was a province Lord's brother. That was some relief.

Still, his comment softened her, and after a moment's hesitation Mel left her bench to kneel with him in the grass, one hand wrapping around his own (the flask did not come with her). "I'm very sorry, my Lord, to say that I don't want you to win the archery tourney tomorrow, but only because I think there's someone who needs to win it more. Will you be much offended if I hope for you to get second?"

It was hard to forget Aiden, how shy and uncertain he was, and Melari thought that a victory of this sort would do wonders for his self-confidence. She could be wrong, of course, but doing well in public never hurt. "As for the rose ceremony..."

Mel put her arm around his shoulder, trying gently to pull him to his feet and onto the bench. "It might have been easier for me than for some. I didn't lose a child or a lover; I can't even imagine how that must hurt." Her voice quieted, then, and she murmured the rest of her thoughts as softly as she knew how. "But the joust doesn't comfort me, and I'm not sure drink would either. What comforts me is the love of people who are left."

She pressed his hand. "I hope we both heal soon."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

Lucius shook his head. “I won’t come in second, but you can wish me there if your heart desires. Just who do you plan on cheering for on the morrow anyway?” He took another drink from his bottle, and then pushed up with his legs as she tried to help him onto the bench. It took a moment, but then there he was, seated next to her. She was cute.

“We all lost someone. It doesn’t matter if they were child or lover or brother or … whatever. A loss is a loss.” He took another drink. “You can hurt as much of the rest of them, no matter who your mourn. Don’t sell your grief short.” His hadn’t much dulled over the last five years. But then... it wasn’t plague who had taken her life either.

“No more talk of that. So if you are cheering for someone are you planning to attend the archery tomorrow?” Archery was more interesting to Lucius than jousting. Plus, Cassius was jousting, and if Lucius was honest with himself he had no desire to see his brother ride, and even less to see the man succeed. Rufus should have been with them. Rufus should have been jousting. Rufus would have won the whole damn thing. But Rufus was also dead, and not from the plague.

“Hard to cheer me second if you don’t come.”

[Melari Forthwind]

The girl hesitated, debating about whether to tell this man the truth or not, then finally decided it couldn't do much harm. "The Faerald heir. He's very nice but he could use a little confidence; I thought winning something like this would help."

They were seated, then, and before she could do anything Lucius had taken another swig. "Hey," Mel scolded. "Do you really think you need that?" She didn't answer his comment about grief, not knowing what to say. Melari didn't think she was selling her grief short, but she also didn't want to dwell on it, so it was very easy for Lucius to change the subject back to archery. "Yes, I'll be attending. I like archery much better than jousting in the first place; I shoot myself, just for fun. I wouldn't have minded entering."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

Lucius laughed. “He’ll lose. But that’s really nice of you. Nice girls like you are rare these days. Well, my sister is nice too. Really nice. You should meet her,” he half slurred, looking at the flask Melari had referred to. Of course he shouldn’t have more. Wasn’t that always how it went. Shouldn’t, but did? Hell, he’d be hitting on this one harder if he wasn’t so drunk and pining over his memories, so perhaps she should have been thankful that he was hitting the bottle again.

Then she said she shot herself. “You do? You should,” pause, swallow, set down flask.. “go with me sometime. I’d love to hear you.. see you shoot. See you shoot your bow at the target.” That was what they were talking about. Archery.

“Are you attending the dinner tonight for the new handmaiden? We were invited. Province family and all, even though those aren’t our gods.” Total random subject change, but Lucius’s mind was rolling around like a kid in a barrel tumbling down a hill. “Something about some new handmaiden,” he repeated.

[Melari Forthwind]

"Um, thanks. I try to be nice, and I'd love to meet your sister, but I still want Aiden to win." Melari could be stubborn, and it chafed to have this stranger laughing at her friend. "Which sister did you mean, anyway? I don't know your family very well, but aren't there three or four girls? And two or three boys?" Something like that. Mel didn't think that much about the Vandermark, so she probably had something wrong.

He'd like to hear her shoot? Melari winced and took the flask away from him again, closing it and tossing it into a nearby flowerbed. "Thank you, I'll be happy to shoot with you sometime. When you're sober." Hopefully Lucius had enough sense not to handle a bow and arrow while drunk, but she wasn't going to count on it. "And yes, I'm going to the feast. The new handmaid is my Aunt Nymeria, and we're all very proud of her." She looked at him, curious. "What gods do they worship in the Vandermark?"

Although it probably wasn't the best idea to start discussing theology with a drunken man.

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

“There are plenty of DeLauncey ladies, but only one has the honor of being my sister. Eveline DeLauncey, the beauty of the wolf pack.” He was still half tispy, but the way he adored his sister was evident in his voice. Eveline was more than just a sister to him; she was the closest friend he had as well. And he loved her dearly,and would protect her with his life. All the brothers would though. She was unique in their line, and thus, she was special. “All my other siblings are men.”

She tossed his flask and he grimaced. “You didn’t have to do that you know. What a waste.” He sighed and moved to sit by her, nodding along with her words. “We worship the old gods. The unnamed...” He didn’t really want to talk about religion. But he had heard that the new handmaiden was very very attractive.

“You’ll have to introduce me to her then, if you’re related and all. I’d love to meet her.” He grinned, but then realized his thoughts were probably not appropriate. “Because I’m sure she’s worthy of the position.”

[Melari Forthwind]

She had to smile at the way he spoke of his sister, leaning back on her seat with a softer expression coming into her eyes. "It sounds like you love her very much. That's the way it should be -- my brother Liam is the same way, and if your Eveline is anything like me, I'm sure she adores you. That's the way siblings ought to be." Melari patted his hand. "I've met Lord Delauncey already. And you say Lady Eveline is a beauty...House DeLauncey must be a good-looking family."

Maybe a bold compliment, but she didn't mean anything by it. Hopefully Lucius wouldn't take it the wrong way -- especially because he was about to get a lecture, in Melari's very best lecturing voice. "A waste?" She looked at him severely. "It's not as bad a waste as a fairly nice, handsome young man ruining his wits by drowning himself in it. A good, intelligent human being is worth more than liquor any day of the week. Don't you think so?"

Melari gave him a little scowl. "I might introduce you, if you're not drunk and if you promise to be good. Aunt Nymeria takes her role very seriously and actually believes in the gods...that aren't unnamed. She's pious."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

“Yeah, I do,” Lucius nodded, still annoyed that she’d taken his flask. He liked his whiskey, and tomorrow he was all sober because of the archery competition. He was going to be the shit out of his brother. He was going to blow that competition away. That was his goal, no matter who else was competing and who was rooting for him. He didn’t need anyone to root for him… although Iridia Harcourt, or Elysia de Valle would be nice. And when he won perhaps one of them would shack up with him afterwards.

The thought went on for a moment and then he realized he was still talking to Melair. “Sorry. What we were talking about? Oh yeah, well most of the DeLauncey’s are. None as much as me though. Let’s be honest after all!” he flashed her a grin. “And no, not really. How many nobles do you really think are all that bright Melari? Don’t tell me you’ve been living under a rock for the last, what sixteen years?” he took a guess.

“If I must be sober, well, I’ll just figure out how to meet herself. I’m sure she’s quite pious. Don’t you have some goddess or love or lust or babies or something that would require some ceremonies between the sheets? I’m going to guess you’ve never honored those have you?”

[Melari Forthwind]

Mel watched him, not taking too kindly to the insinuation that she lived under a rock. "Seventeen years, and you have to remember that the plague made it difficult to travel. I studied as best I could so as to not be completely ignorant, but I didn't meet many other nobles. Just the Faerald family, and my own -- and none of us are stupid. I prefer to give other people the benefit of the doubt."

He'd underestimated her age, too. Hmph.

Mel's indignation didn't get to last long; Lucius had followed to a topic she'd never even dreamed of and all at once she was blushing hotly red. "C-ceremonies between the -- no, nothing of the kind!" Melari looked at him, shocked. "The god Enkil protects maidens and we pray to him on our wedding night. There is a god of l..lust, but --" She stammered, too embarrassed to follow the topic clearly. "He doesn't ask such things. And even if he did I am a maid."

Not that it was any of his business but where on earth had that COME from?!

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

“Maybe your family isn’t,” Lucius snorted, “But mine is.” He immediately regretted the words. Cassius wasn’t stupid; he just made poor decisions. And the twins didn’t much care about things. And as far as they all knew, Lucius didn’t care either, and probably was being stupid enough to drink his brains away. But that helped with the pain, so why did he care?

“A god of lust doesn’t ask for such things? Melari, be real. Why have a god of lust at all if he didn’t dream of taking your maidenhead.” She was blushing. She was upset. She was, as he realized, an innocent maiden.

“You look like a sweet girl though.” Too sweet for him. Lucius loved the candy, but he preferred ladies with experience over blushing brides anyway. “Your Aiden deserves you.” Which was more than a man like Lucius would ever deserve (or even want to. There were some things in life you just didn’t change.)

[Melari Forthwind]

"...I don't think your family is stupid. What about the sister you just told me about?" She tilted her head at him, concerned, but the conversation didn't go back to the realms of the normal. It was still awkward and embarrassing and discussing her maidenhead with someone she hardly knew...gods, she probably couldn't even have this conversation with Marisee without getting embarrassed.

The girl ducked her head, twisting her hands in her lap. She was too shy to look at Lucius so she kept her eyes there even as she tried to explain. "Our gods have balance. There is always a god for opposite forces -- one who protects lost people; one who leads people astray. Fire. Water. Moonlight. Sun. Innocence and lust. There is a time and a place for all things and each god understands his or her proper time and place, and people who know the same do well. Enkil helps girls who guard their virtue until the wedding night. A happy marriage is the traditional way but I know that's not wholly true or even accurate -- if the husband is bad Enkil can't, or won't, force him not to be. But there are other protections that come with it. Subtle ones, like being less likely to make your husband jealous or more likely to have your word taken seriously. Sylvanus is given free rein after the binding and there might be ceremonies of..of that nature for married couples but I don't know what they are. Right now it's not possible to serve Sylvanus without also offending Enkil."

To be honest, talk of such things frightened her. She knew so little and what she did know...well, it just seemed unpleasant. Marisee's talk of "perks" notwithstanding, the thought of being bedded didn't exactly fill Melari with joy. "You speak very freely of such things. I assume you are more, um, familiar with them than I." A lot more familiar.

Lucius' final comment made the girl blush again, and she quickly shook her head. "Aiden and I aren't like that. He's just my friend."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

Lucius listened to Melari speak of her gods. He had to admit it was slightly interesting. His own gods were simpler, easier to follow. And he had no intention of believing that her gods really existed. But the mentality of balance appealed to him, and could be used to explain to people like Eveline why he was the man he was. Balance. Couldn’t have the good without the bad and he was definitely the bad of his family. Bad, but smart. Smarter than all of them. Smart enough to see the lies that were eating out the core of his family.

“Eveline is always the exception to everything I say,” Lucius told her, with all honesty. His love for his sister was perhaps the only good quality he had. “She is a perfect lady, and were she not my sister. Well, no need, she is.” Eveline was a woman he could see falling in love with, were he, say, Jon Fitzwulf or one of the de Valle men. But she was his sister, he couldn’t see that way. He could only see the potential she had to make someone very happy, and he would demand that the old gods give her that happiness.

“More than you know, Melari, and always happy to teach.” He grin and reached an arm around her. “Trust me, you will go more happy to your husband bed if you’ve already taken care of the action.” He smiled at her, true and nice. He could be the wolf that was on his banner better than the rest of them. “No lie, beautiful, it does hurt the first time. And if your husband is lacking in experience, he’ll probably plow you until he comes. He won’t know that it hurts you, and you won’t want to tell him.”

She was beautiful. He had a feeling this one would push him off, and he wasn’t really in the state of wanting to flirt. His nature however, was what it was. “And there is no sense in being embarrassed about something we as people do all the time. Whoever decided that it was improper is no friend of mine.”

[Melari Forthwind]

"Let go."

There was no smile on Melari's face now; no warmth in her voice. Indeed she was barely audible, sudden fear and sickness robbing her of her words. The crude way Lucius was talking, about her, the way he was describing her wedding night, the way his arm was around her shoulder -- out of nowhere tears were stinging her eyes and slipping down her cheeks. It felt so frightening and wrong and for some reason she couldn't pull away. "Please let go."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

The fear in her voice sobered him immediately and he rose. He reached for the flask she held and took it from her hands. “I think it might be time for me to take my leave, my lady, you don’t seem well receptive to charm and it is not the day for that anyway.” He could see this wasn’t going to end well. As much as Lucius liked trouble...

He didn’t want that type of trouble.

He bowed lightly, “Go find your little man, whom you wish to cheer for.” That would be better for a fragile girl like her.

[Melari Forthwind]

"I don't seem well receptive to charm?"

Melari's voice was dangerously quiet, and all at once she was on her feet with her eyes blazing. "What about you is meant to be charming? I suppose I can appreciate your honesty -- I suppose it is a small kindness not to pretend that you care my name is Melari instead of Elizabeth or Eveline or Aurora or Jane. I guess it would be worse if you were charming on the surface and then dropped me like a load if bricks once you'd had your fun. But the fact is that you don't care. I could be anyone and it wouldn't matter because I am just a tool for you to use. No human being deserves that."

She took a step closer, anger carrying her past fear. "Want to know something else? We had a steward once, who did things to the maids, and once I saw and they were so frightened of him they begged me not to tell. The game you play isn't funny. It isn't charming. Thank you for releasing me but don't you dare leave here with a false idea of your so-called charm."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

She was yelling, and and the more she yelled, the more he blocked her out. It was the way of men, who hated verbal conflict and Lucius would never, no matter his state, hit a woman. He might have been a drunk leach at times, but he was not violent. “Just go away, Melari. Go away, run and leave me alone. You and I weren’t meant to cross paths! Go, because you say something else stupid.”

Because she was muttering words that clearly didn’t apply to him. How many woman had thrown themselves at him with just a smile, and this one was blaming him for anything he said! He couldn’t take that. Especially not now. Not the day after he was reeling from the loss of the one woman he’d loved and grappling with the fact that he had felt that spark again, finally, for someone new.

He turned his back. That was easiest.

[Melari Forthwind]

"I was here first." Melari's voice wasn't loud, but it was firm. "But I'd like to know how I'm being stupid. Why do you think it's fine to speak so crudely to someone you barely know? Why do you think that's charming? I imagine you're used to being handsome and having girls throw themselves at you, but you must be smart enough to know that these women are far inferior to your Eveline. I'm sorry the truth upsets you, but your life will probably be happier once you try living to your best potential. Surely you deserve better than this."

[Lucius Kaedon DeLauncey]

She was infuriating! “My life is happy and my life is fine!” He threw at her, but he was thinking of Iridia then, and how Iridia was a woman who compared to Eveline. Melari’s logic was driving him crazy though, especially with the alcohol in his head. He was charming! She was just too prude to see it. That was what was going on. He’d picked the wrong woman to spend his time with.

“I don’t see why you feel the need to lecture me about what you think is charming.” He did not look at her again, because he didn’t want to see any pity in her eyes. Or anger. Cassius gave him enough of that. He wanted to see Iridia and Marchie, and the others who enjoyed his company.